USSR launches Sputnik, first artificial earth satellite. In response, US forms the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) within the Department of Defense (DoD) to establish US lead in science and technology applicable to the military (:amk:)
1960s
Design of packet-switching networks
- Paul Baran, RAND: "On Distributed Communications Networks"
- No single outage point.
1967
ACM Symposium on Operating Principles
- Plan presented for a packet-switching network
1968
Network presentation to the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA)
1969
ARPANET commissioned by DOD for research into networking
- Uses Network Control Protocol (NCP) through Information Message Processors (IMP) developed by Bolt Beranek and Newman, Inc. (BBN)
- First node at UCLA, soon after at Stanford Research Institute (SRI), UCSB, and the University of Utah.
First Request for Comment (RFC): "Host Software" by Steve Crocker
1970s
Store and Forward Networks
- Electronic mail technology extended to conferencing. HM Elizabeth, Queen of the United Kingdom sends out an e-mail.
1970
ALOHAnet developed by Norman Abrahamson, U of Hawaii (:sk2:)
1971
15 nodes (23 hosts): UCLA, SRI, UCSB, U of Utah, BBN, MIT, RAND, SDC, Harvard, Lincoln Lab, Stanford, UIU(C), CWRU, CMU, NASA/Ames
1972
International Conference on Computer Communications with demonstration of ARPANET between 40 machines organized by Bob Kahn.
InterNetworking Working Group (INWG) created to address need for establishing agreed upon protocols. Chairman: Vinton Cerf.
1973
First international connections to the ARPANET: England and Norway
1975
Operational management of Internet transferred to DCA (now DISA).
BBN (Bolt Beranek and Newman) opens Telenet, commercial version of ARPANET (:sk2:)>
1976
UUCP (unix-to-unix copy) developed at AT&T Bell Labs and distributed with UNIX one year later.
1977
THEORYNET created at U of Wisconsin providing electronic mail to over 100 researchers in computer science (using uucp).
1979
Meeting between U of Wisconsin, DARPA, NSF, and computer scientists from many universities to establish a Computer Science Department research computer network. USENET established using uucp between Duke and UNC.
1981
BITNET, the "Because Its Time (There) NETwork"
- Started as a cooperative network at the City University of New York.
- Provides electronic mail and listserv servers to distribute information.
- Unlike USENET, where client software is needed, electronic mail is the only tool necessary.
CSNET (Computer Science NETwork) comes into being providing a dial-up capability to electronic mail. Many universities feeling left out of ARPANET, join CSNET.
1982
INWG establishes the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and Internet Protocol (IP), as the protocol suite, commonly known as TCP/IP, for ARPANET.
- This leads to one of the first definition of an "internet" as a connected set of networks, specifically those using TCP/IP, and "Internet" as connected TCP/IP internets.
1983
Name server developed at U of Wisconsin, no longer requiring users to know the exact path to other systems.
CSNET / ARPANET gateway put in place. ARPANET split into ARPANET and MILNET with the latter becoming integrated with the Defense Data Network created the previous year.
Desktop workstations come into being, many with Berkeley UNIX which includes IP networking software.
Need switches from having a single, large time sharing computer connected to Internet per site, to connection of an entire local network.
Berkeley releases 4.2BSD incorporating TCP/IP (:mpc:)
1984
Domain Name Server (DNS) introduced.
of hosts breaks 1,000
1986
NSFNET created (backbone speed of 56Kbps) - NSF establishes 5 super-computing centers to provide high-computing power for all.
- ARPANET bureaucracy keeps it from being used to interconnect centers and NSFNET comes into being with the aid of NASA and DOE.
- This allows an explosion of connections, especially from universities.
Cleveland Freenet (start of NPTN) comes on-line (:sk2:)
1987
NSF signs a cooperative agreement to manage the NSFNET backbone with IBM, MCI, and Merit Network, Inc.
**1000th RFC: "Request For Comments reference guide".
of hosts breaks 10,000.
of BITNET hosts breaks 1,000
1988
Internet worm burrows through the Net.
1989
of hosts breaks 100,000.
NSFNET backbone upgraded to T1 (1.544Mbps).
RIPE (Reseaux IP Europeens) formed (by European service providers) to ensure the necessary administrative and technical coordination to allow the operation of the pan-European IP Network. (:glg:)
1990
ARPANET ceases to exist.
First relay between a commercial electronic mail carrier (MCI Mail) and the Internet through the Clearinghouse for Networked Information. Electronic Frontier Foundation is founded by Mitch Kapor
1991
Commercial Internet eXchange (CIX) Association, Inc. formed by General Atomics (CERFnet), Performance Systems International, Inc. (PSInet), and UUNET Technologies, Inc. (AlterNet) (:glg:).
WAIS released by Thinking Machines Corporation.
Gopher released by University of Minnesota.
1992
Internet Society is chartered.
World-Wide Web released by CERN.
of hosts breaks 1,000,000.
NSFNET backbone upgraded to T3 (44,736Mbps)
1993
InterNIC created to provide specific Internet services: (:sc1:)
- directory and database services (AT&T)
- registration services (Network Solutions Inc.)
- information services (General Atomics/CERFnet)
US White House comes on-line:
- President Bill Clinton: president@whitehouse.gov
- Vice-President Al Gore: vice-president@whitehouse.gov
- First Lady Hillary Clinton: root@whitehouse.gov (-:rhz:-)
Internet Talk Radio begins broadcasting (:sk2:).
Businesses and media take notice of the Internet!
1994
Communities begin to be wired up directly to the Internet (Lexington and Cambridge, Mass., USA).
US Senate and State of California provide information servers.
Shopping malls arrive on the Internet.
Arizona law firm of Canter & Siegel "spams" the Internet with email advertising green card lottery services; Net citizens flame back.
NSFNET traffic passes 10 trillion bytes/month.
You can now order from Pizza Hut, online!
WWW edges out telnet to become 2nd most popular service on the Net (behind ftp-data) based on % of packets and bytes traffic distribution on NSFNET. Japanese Prime Minister on-line (http://www.kantei.go.jp/).
UK's HM Treasury on-line (http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/).
New Zealand's Info Tech Prime Minister on-line (http://www.govt.nz/).
First Virtual, the first cyberbank, open up for business.
Radio stations start rockin' (rebroadcasting) round the clock on the Net: WXYC at UofNC, WJHK at UofKS-Lawrence, KUGS at Western WA U.
1995
NSFNET reverts back to a research network. Main US backbone traffic is now routed through interconnected network providers.
Hong Kong police disconnect all but 1 of the colony's Internet providers in search of a hacker. 10,000 people are left without Net access. (:api:)
Radio HK, the first 24 hr., Internet-only radio station starts broadcasting.
WWW surpasses ftp-data in March as the service with greatest traffic on NSFNet based on packet count, and in April based on byte count.
Traditional online dial-up systems (Compuserve, American Online, Prodigy) begin to provide Internet access. A number of Net related companies go public, with Netscape leading the pack with the 3rd largest ever NASDAQ IPO share value (9 August).
Registration of domain names is no longer free. Beginning 14 September, a $50 annual fee has been imposed, which up until now was subsidized by NSF. NSF continues to pay for .edu registration, and on an interim basis for .gov
The Vatican comes on-line (http://www.vatican.va/). The Canadian Goverment comes on-line (http://canada.gc.ca/).
The first official Internet wiretap was successful in helping the Secret Service and Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) aprehend three individuals who were illegally manufacturing and selling cell phone cloning equipment and electronic devices.
Operation Home Front connects, for the first time, soldiers in the field with their families back home via the Internet.
1996
The Internet 1996 World Exposition, the first World's Fair to take place on the Internet.
"A Day in the Life of the Internet" published (:rhz:)
courtesy of Robert Hobbes Zakon (1996)
- Paul Baran, RAND: "On Distributed Communications Networks"
- No single outage point.
- Plan presented for a packet-switching network
- Uses Network Control Protocol (NCP) through Information Message Processors (IMP) developed by Bolt Beranek and Newman, Inc. (BBN)
- First node at UCLA, soon after at Stanford Research Institute (SRI), UCSB, and the University of Utah.
First Request for Comment (RFC): "Host Software" by Steve Crocker
- Electronic mail technology extended to conferencing.
HM Elizabeth, Queen of the United Kingdom sends out an e-mail.
InterNetworking Working Group (INWG) created to address need for establishing agreed upon protocols. Chairman: Vinton Cerf.
BBN (Bolt Beranek and Newman) opens Telenet, commercial version of ARPANET (:sk2:)>
USENET established using uucp between Duke and UNC.
- Started as a cooperative network at the City University of New York.
- Provides electronic mail and listserv servers to distribute information.
- Unlike USENET, where client software is needed, electronic mail is the only tool necessary.
CSNET (Computer Science NETwork) comes into being providing a dial-up capability to electronic mail. Many universities feeling left out of ARPANET, join CSNET.
- This leads to one of the first definition of an "internet" as a connected set of networks, specifically those using TCP/IP, and "Internet" as connected TCP/IP internets.
CSNET / ARPANET gateway put in place.
ARPANET split into ARPANET and MILNET with the latter becoming integrated with the Defense Data Network created the previous year.
Desktop workstations come into being, many with Berkeley UNIX which includes IP networking software.
Need switches from having a single, large time sharing computer connected to Internet per site, to connection of an entire local network.
Berkeley releases 4.2BSD incorporating TCP/IP (:mpc:)
- NSF establishes 5 super-computing centers to provide high-computing power for all.
- ARPANET bureaucracy keeps it from being used to interconnect centers and NSFNET comes into being with the aid of NASA and DOE.
- This allows an explosion of connections, especially from universities.
Cleveland Freenet (start of NPTN) comes on-line (:sk2:)
**1000th RFC: "Request For Comments reference guide".
- of hosts breaks 100,000.
NSFNET backbone upgraded to T1 (1.544Mbps).RIPE (Reseaux IP Europeens) formed (by European service providers) to ensure the necessary administrative and technical coordination to allow the operation of the pan-European IP Network. (:glg:)
First relay between a commercial electronic mail carrier (MCI Mail) and the Internet through the Clearinghouse for Networked Information.
Electronic Frontier Foundation is founded by Mitch Kapor
WAIS released by Thinking Machines Corporation.
Gopher released by University of Minnesota.
World-Wide Web released by CERN.
- of hosts breaks 1,000,000.
NSFNET backbone upgraded to T3 (44,736Mbps)- directory and database services (AT&T)
- registration services (Network Solutions Inc.)
- information services (General Atomics/CERFnet)
US White House comes on-line:
- President Bill Clinton: president@whitehouse.gov
- Vice-President Al Gore: vice-president@whitehouse.gov
- First Lady Hillary Clinton: root@whitehouse.gov (-:rhz:-)
Internet Talk Radio begins broadcasting (:sk2:).
Businesses and media take notice of the Internet!
US Senate and State of California provide information servers.
Shopping malls arrive on the Internet.
Arizona law firm of Canter & Siegel "spams" the Internet with email advertising green card lottery services; Net citizens flame back.
NSFNET traffic passes 10 trillion bytes/month.
You can now order from Pizza Hut, online!
WWW edges out telnet to become 2nd most popular service on the Net (behind ftp-data) based on % of packets and bytes traffic distribution on NSFNET.
Japanese Prime Minister on-line (http://www.kantei.go.jp/).
UK's HM Treasury on-line (http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/).
New Zealand's Info Tech Prime Minister on-line (http://www.govt.nz/).
First Virtual, the first cyberbank, open up for business.
Radio stations start rockin' (rebroadcasting) round the clock on the Net: WXYC at UofNC, WJHK at UofKS-Lawrence, KUGS at Western WA U.
Hong Kong police disconnect all but 1 of the colony's Internet providers in search of a hacker. 10,000 people are left without Net access. (:api:)
Radio HK, the first 24 hr., Internet-only radio station starts broadcasting.
WWW surpasses ftp-data in March as the service with greatest traffic on NSFNet based on packet count, and in April based on byte count.
Traditional online dial-up systems (Compuserve, American Online, Prodigy) begin to provide Internet access.
A number of Net related companies go public, with Netscape leading the pack with the 3rd largest ever NASDAQ IPO share value (9 August).
Registration of domain names is no longer free. Beginning 14 September, a $50 annual fee has been imposed, which up until now was subsidized by NSF. NSF continues to pay for .edu registration, and on an interim basis for .gov
The Vatican comes on-line (http://www.vatican.va/).
The Canadian Goverment comes on-line (http://canada.gc.ca/).
The first official Internet wiretap was successful in helping the Secret Service and Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) aprehend three individuals who were illegally manufacturing and selling cell phone cloning equipment and electronic devices.
Operation Home Front connects, for the first time, soldiers in the field with their families back home via the Internet.
"A Day in the Life of the Internet" published (:rhz:)